'Hunger Games' movie reviews: What are they saying?

Jennifer Lawrence "gives us a female warrior worth cheering," Peter Travers of Rolling Stone writes of her performance as Katniss in "The Hunger Games."

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Tomorrow is the official release date for the long-anticipated film version of 'The Hunger Games' but already some fans have had their most burning question answered. For months now, devoted readers of Suzanne Collins' wildly popular young adult novel have been wondering if the movie version would be any good.

If the early reviews are to be believed, the answer to that question is yes – for the most part.

Below are a sampling of some major reviews. Overall, critics seemed to find much to like although it must also be noted that some who mostly praised the movie did so rather faintly. For the less jubilant, perhaps the best summaries come from Ty Burr at The Boston Globe (who led with: "Movie's good. Book's still better.") and the headline in The Detroit News: "First film in franchise tantalizes but doesn't transcend."

Here's what some of the more positive reviews have to say:

The LA Times: "Making a successful 'Hunger Games' movie out of Suzanne Collins' novel required casting the best possible performer as Katniss, and in Jennifer Lawrence director Gary Ross and company have hit the bull's-eye, so to speak," writes Kenneth Turan.